FREE BOOKLET

FOR PARENTS

Best books for 0-5 years

How to explore and share

books with your child

What to read next

Look out for the age flagging on all our books, helping you to choose the right book for your child.

Best for ages 0-6 months

Best for ages 6-18 months

Best for ages 18-36 months

Best for ages3-5 years

Best for BABY

Best for NEW BABY

Best for PRE-SCHOOL

Best for TODDLER

Sharing and talking about books with babies and toddlers from an early stage is not only an important step in their journey to becoming lifelong readers, but is also shown to be vital to their academic and communication development. From books with wheels to books that roar and splat, this booklet,

written by Wendy Cooling, is a guide to help you choose, share

and explore the best books with your child. It also offers useful tips,

advice and help on how to read with your child and what to read next.

About Wendy CoolingWendy Cooling is an eminent figure in the world of children’s books.

She works with schools, publishers, libraries and the government on

the promotion of literacy and love of books. Wendy was an English

teacher for many years before leaving to head up the then

Children’s Book Foundation where she initiated the BookStart

project, a national programme which gives free books to every

child in the UK.

For more information on Campbell Books visit:

www.campbell-books.com

All books listed are available from all good book retailers in 2017. Jacket images used may not be final.

Respond to the voice of someone who loves them

Love the closeness of being on your knee and sharing some time

Very soon begin to understand how books work

Quickly see the need to look and to listen

Begin to understand rhyme and rhythm

Know that reading time is fun

Soon want to join in

“Learning to read is probably the single most important factor in school success, and nothing contributes as much to success in early literacy as early exposure to books.” Naomi Eisenstadt, Head of Sure Start

Why should you read with your child?

It is clear that sharing books is central to children's lives - it is never too

soon to start reading to your baby and it is such a pleasure for the whole

family. Giving the gift of reading is giving a gift for life. Baby won't know

what a book is and will not understand all the words but will:

New Baby 0-6 months

These very first books will introduce your baby to a world of fun. They are books for the toy box, for bed or bath time, or to take out and about. Their bright colours and interesting textures will help your child begin to learn how books work and bring them delight!

Baby's Very First Book: Farm / Faces are soft cloth books with high contrast colours – ideal for babies as they’re easy for the youngest eyes to focus on. The pages make a wonderful crunchy, crinkling sound as you touch them. Baby will be keen to explore the books and discover the noises and textures.

Baby's First Peekabook:Hello You! / Little FriendsWith high contrast pictures to help babies focus, peep-through holes to play peekaboo, a mirror, and fold-out pages for 'tummy time' these first board books are designed to stimulate babies in their first six months.

Illustrated by Jo Lodge

Illustrated by Stephen Barker

Best for NEW BABY

Baby 6-18 months

By six months your baby’s co-ordination is developing and they are really starting to explore the world. These books focus on touching and feeling and looking at things firmly connected with daily life. Soon your baby will be ready to really join in with the reading experience, turning the pages, lifting the flaps, guessing and more.

Baby's First Playbook: PEEPO A big, tough, book with lots of interaction for busy little hands and minds. Baby will soon be playing with it on the carpet, learning to tug and twist the chunky tabs and finding out who is playing peepo! Even very young children will be happy to experiment with this book independently and will feel real satisfaction at their achievement.

By Jo Lodge

Best for BABY

Monkey Music: Magic Sounds Based on the award-winning Monkey Music classes, this series will soon get your child singing, reading, learning, and laughing as they take part in the musical adventures of Monkey and Mo. Music is a fundamental part of pre-school children's development, helping them to enjoy socialising, learning and playing. For toddler-aged

children, try Monkey Music: Let's Sing and Play.

Bumpy Books: Colours / Animals Colours and Animals are delightful books for babies in the Bumpy Books series. With bright, bold illustrations, different textures for little ones to touch and feel, simple words to encourage language skills, and familiarisation of everyday objects, these books are the perfect introduction to first concepts. Counting and Patterns are also in the series.

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You can share a book anywhere and at any time of the dayBe comfortable, curl up on a sofa, in a chair, on a large cushion, or maybe in the gardenSometimes five minutes is enough, never push it if your baby is not in the moodPoint to the pictures to show how they connect with the wordsLet your child help to turn the page as soon as they tryGo back and forth between the pages if this is what baby wants

Reading to your baby is nothing to worry about. Follow my top tips:

By Jo Lodge

By Emily Bolam

By Angie Coates Illustrated by Emily Bolam

Best for BABY

There's a Busy Book for almost every occasion as this brilliant series grows and grows and introduces children to the world. In the latest releases, you can meet all the different animals in Busy Farm and help the farmer round up the sheep at bedtime, or visit the playground and have a picnic in Busy Park. These tough little board books offer so much fun for toddlers as they push, pull, turn and slide through the pages, discovering more and more as they go. There will be a perfect time for each title in the series, for example Swimming, Baking, or Playtime. Or, take a Busy Book with you on a day out or on holiday. Look out for Busy Beach, and Busy Airport. There's always lots to talk about - these really are busy books.

Babies become toddlers so soon, and are quickly able to take in lots more vocabulary and become fully involved in sharing a book. They will be happy to look at books on their own but will continue to love shared reading time. There will be more talk – especially questions – as your child’s language skills develop, and reading time will not necessarily be quiet time. They’re ready for rhymes and stories, and will be joining in wherever they can. The focus is now on the words as well as the pictures.

Illustrated by Louise Forshaw

Illustrated by Rebecca Finn

Toddler 18-36 months Best for TODDLER

First Stories are classic interactive fairy tales that you'll enjoy sharing with your toddler. A tiny hidden creature on every page encourages children to look closely at the pictures. Joining the series of fairy tales, you and your toddler can now meet Beauty and the Beast in a mysterious castle, or follow the Darling children as they travel to Neverland and discover the Lost Boys in Peter Pan. Be sure to collect all the First Stories including The Little Mermaid, The Jungle Book,

Snow White, and more!

Illustrated by Chorkung

Illustrated by Jenny Wren

Illustrated by Dan Taylor

Illustrated by Miriam Bos

First Explorers: Sea Creatures / In the Jungle The First Explorers series is gentle and fun with bite-size facts and spottingpanels you'll enjoy sharing with your toddler. Young children love the push, pull, and slide tabs, as they help make them feel part of the story. Dive into busy rock pools, beautiful coral reefs, icy oceans, and the deep, dark sea or explore crowded canopies, towering treetops and the dense forest floor. Also available in the series are

Dinosaurs and Night Animals.

Best for TODDLER

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Never go out without a book

Children are learning to read the world every day and often a book can help

There’s a book for every occasion

One of the best things about books is that you can take and read them anywhere; nothing is easier to carry than a story. Most Campbell books for very young children are robust and can be wiped clean after messy fingers have turned their pages. Take one of these with you when you’re on the move.

Whizzy Wheels: My First Camper Van and My First Truck are lots of fun as the wheels on these shaped board books really do whizz! The pages are packed with information, always lightly presented. My First Camper Van takes us on a camping trip to the countryside. It has lots of noisy words for children to join in with and little questions to help them focus on the pictures. The noises and questions carry on in My First Truck, a story about the building of an adventure playground.

Don’t forget a Buggy Buddies book like Farm as you take your child out and about. One that works well with babies is Pets, a gentle touch and feel book for your child to look at and play with as they head out.

Illustrated by Marion Billet

Illustrated by Jo Lodge

Best for TODDLER

Best for BABY

Out and About1 year +

Best for TODDLER

Best for BABY

Books to Play With 1 year +

So many of the books already mentioned are close to being toys and it’s good for children to see them that way. They may at the same time be given lovely picture books which will live on their first bookshelf and they will learn to look after these in a different way. The books below combine playing and reading, and learning too!

The London Noisy Tube In the shape of a tube train with bright, bold and beautiful illustrations, The London Noisy Tube promises to be lots of fun for train-mad toddlers on the move! Young children will love to press the chunky sound button and hear an authentic 'mind the gap' recording message as they journey through the sights of London by tube.

The London Noisy Book is perfect to read, play with and talk about. Just like real-life London, it is full of noises as well as famous places to see. The sounds are quite brilliant, especially ‘mind the gap’, a recording of the message used on the underground trains. This is a book to turn to again and again.

Illustrated by Marion Billet

Illustrated by Marion Billet• London titles also available: My First London Bus, My First London Taxi, Hello! London, My First London Sticker Book, My Big London Play Set. •

Axel Scheffler Treasury of Rhyming Stories A collection of three rhyming stories from beloved children's illustrator and creator of The Gruffalo, Axel Scheffler, with CD performed by Joanna Page, the voice of Poppy Cat. These stories have lots of details that children will love to spot, and they will enjoy learning the songs and rhymes that you learned as a child, and feel like they are following in your footsteps.

My First Search and Find: Dinosaur Lands There are pages of fun in the brilliant My First Search and Find series that introduces the world while making early learning fun. Tabs help children to find the chosen page, and each one is jam-packed with fascinating words and detailed pictures. In Dinosaur Lands, there are seven themed scenes: from the forest to the desert, in the swamp and at the museum.From Tyrannosaurus Rex to Velociraptors, Spinosaurus to Triceratops, Dinosaur Lands is a large board book, sure to keep little ones entertained!

Puppy Dog, Puppy Dog How Are You? / Pussy Cat, Pussy Cat What Do You See? This series from award-winning author/illustrator Jo Lodge is aptly named Wiggle and Giggle - children can wiggle the tabs and giggle as the funny animal characters come to life. What can pussy cat see, donkey hear and rabbit smell? Why is puppy dog happy and giraffe sad? Explore the senses or feelings in these books that are sure to put a big smile on your child's face with brilliantly bold, bright pictures and a sweet, rhyming text.

Books to Play With 1 year + Best for TODDLER

Best for PRE-SCHOOL

• Things That Go, Wild Animals and Sea Creatures also available •

By Jo Lodge

Illustrated by Neiko Ng

Best for PRE-SCHOOL

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TOP TIPS!

Reading time is NOT quiet time. Encourage your child to join in and ask questions

Encourage your child to look at these books independently as well as with you

Charlie Chick I love the humour in these books. Children get very excited when the pages pop up and will need to be encouraged to handle them carefully. Charlie Chick is a real character - he's growing bigger because he eats too much. Soon he barely fits into the book... but there's a big surprise at the end as the page folds out and we meet his mum! You'll enjoy these every single time, especially with the latest additions to the

series, the lift-the-flap book Charlie Chick Wants to Play and the pop-up book

Charlie Chick Finds an Egg.

By Nick Denchfield and Ant Parker

• Charlie Chick Goes to School and Charlie Chick Learns to Fly also available •

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My First Sticker Activity: Busy Bookshop This exciting introduction to a bookshop offers lots to talk about, and pictures to complete with stickers large and small. Don’t worry about the stickers being put in strange places – they’re important to engage the childin the reading experience. There are many activities to join in with: drawing, colouring, spot the difference, counting and more.

Activity 3-5 years

TOP TIPS!

Activity books are perfect for encouraging creativity and concentration.

My Big London Play Set This child friendly box includes the brilliant My First London Sticker Book, a giant fold-out play mat, stand-up play pieces and 250 stickers. A fun introduction to London, offering masses to talk about and hours of creative play.

Read the story first to get your child into the magic world of the book

Stickers will be put in strange places – don’t worry, it’s creative

It doesn't matter what colours your child chooses

These books help to develop concentration and colouring in - let your child work freely

Illustrated by Marion Billet

Illustrated by Marion Billet

• My First London Sticker Book also available •

Best for PRE-SCHOOL

Start early; talk, sing and read to your bump Share books as often as you can, every day if possible Encourage your child to choose their own books Be happy to read a favourite again and again Reading time is bonding time, and a great opportunity for a cuddle Hearing new words helps to develop a richer vocabulary Reading connects children with other people's worlds Reading to your child helps build their listening and concentration skills Enjoy the books that come home from nursery and school Join your local library - it's free for the whole family

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Help and Support

Useful organisations

BookTrust transforms lives by getting children and families reading.

It is the UK's largest children's reading charity that reaches 2.5 million children a

year with books, resources and support to help develop a love of reading. www.booktrust.org.uk

National Literacy Trust promotes literacy in the wider community and always

introduces innovative ideas to support this topic. www.literacytrust.org.uk

The Reading Agency works with libraries to encourage reading for pleasure.

Look out for the brilliant Summer Reading Challenge, which your child can take

part in from the age of four. www.readingagency.org.uk

Public Library Public Libraries offer children a chance to browse and develop their own taste in reading. Many libraries run sessions for the very youngest children - from baby bounce to story time - visit yours today.

Campbell Books, a specialist maker of books for children aged 0–5

www.campbell-books.comCampbell Books is an imprint of Pan Macmillan